Close the Door
by shandyiscanon
Summary: The team has a difficult case. Dealing with a child killer is never easy.
They had been going nonstop for nearly forty-eight hours, and the case looked like it was going to be closing up soon. They had a suspect in custody, and they just needed to get a confession and a deal from him. The team gathered in the electronics room, waiting for a signal from the defense attorney that had been called in that they were ready to proceed with the interview. Sharon stat in the chair beside Buzz, listening intently as Mike rattled on about numbers and text messages and a strategy for obtaining a good confession.

Andy glanced down at Sharon and could tell that her mind was elsewhere, her focus split between what Mike was saying and something else. He placed his hand on her shoulder and squeezed gently. "You okay?" he asked quietly when Mike finished.

"Yeah," she nodded slowly, "Just tired," she looked up at him with sad eyes, and placed her hand gently over his. Cases involving children were always difficult for her. No matter how old her children were, when a child was murdered, she always pictured her children, grateful that they were all alive and well. She couldn't imagine losing any of them, and she hoped she would never have to.

"It'll be over, soon," he said, smiling down at her.

"I know," she nodded, looking back at the monitor in front of her.

"Captain, the suspect is ready," Buzz nodded towards the monitor. Sharon glanced his way and then stood up, straightening out her jacket as she did so. She brushed Andy's arm as she was walking past him, squeezing gently.

"Andy, will you join me?" she asked, sucking her lower lip into her mouth. She hated facing child killers, but having Andy beside her would be a reassuring presence.

"Of course," he nodded, following her out of the room. "Hey," he stopped her before they went into the interview room and ran his hands down her arms, "It's going to be okay. If it gets to be too much, just squeeze my knee under the table and leave," he smiled, squeezing her hands in his.

"I will," she nodded, taking a deep breath and walking into the interview room.

"Captain, my client is ready to make a deal," Linda Rothman, Sharon's least favorite defense attorney spoke with a smug grin on her face.

"Ms. Rothman, before I make a deal with your client, I need to hear all the facts. Are you ready for that, Mr. Grange?" Sharon sat down across the table from him, her arms folded across her chest.

"That bitch got what she deserved," he all but shouted, lunging forward in his seat.

"Listen," Andy spoke, leaning forward in his seat, "That 'bitch' you're talking about was your six year old daughter. She couldn't have possibly done anything do deserve that."

"What do you know, asshole!"

"John!" Linda interrupted. Sharon glanced at Andy and then back at Linda taking a deep breath to remain calm. "My client is going to go against my advice and tell you his story of events. We don't expect anything special, Captain. Just life in prison as opposed to the death penalty. I'm being very generous because my client is being extremely uncooperative." Sharon nodded curtly, turning her attention towards John Grange.

"Please, go ahead, Mr. Grange," she sighed, leaning back in her chair.

"That little bitch," he began, before Andy interrupted him.

"If you want this deal to go through," he said through gritted teeth, "You need to address her by her name."

"Fine," he rolled his eyes, "Madison Grange," he began again, "She was a bitch from the day she was born. Never shut up. Cried all the time as a baby, and the whining didn't stop as she grew up. Anyway, I was sitting in my chair at home, trying to enjoy the baseball game, when she came into the room screaming about a dog out in the yard. We don't have a dog, so I really didn't care. I told her to shut up and go back to her room. She didn't, though. She started tugging at my arm, pulling me towards the window to look at some stupid fucking dog out in the yard. 'Daddy, look at the puppy!' she screamed." He sat back, raking his hands through his dirty hair. He was unkept, grungy, a low-life alcoholic if Andy had ever seen one.

"And then what?" Sharon asked, willing him to continue.

"I told her to stop going on about the stupid dog and told her to get me a beer out of the fridge," he sighed, shaking his head, "She stomped her foot and said no. Said I didn't need another beer. That little bitch had no right."

Sharon could feel Andy gripping her knee under the table. It was supposed to be her signal for when it became too much for her, but she could tell that he was getting to Andy. She briefly squeezed his hand before returning her attention to the suspect.

"So then what did you do?" Sharon asked quietly, watching as Linda closed her eyes, hoping that her client would stay quiet.

"I got up and grabbed that little bitch by the hair, I took her into the kitchen and threw her at the fridge and told her she better listen to me when I tell her to do something. When she didn't get up, I realized she was dead," he shrugged, seemingly unaffected by the fact that he had killed his own daughter, "I knew her mom would be pissed when she came home and had seen what had happened, so I took her out to the car, drove to Echo Park, and dumped her down a ravine."

It took everything Sharon had in her to remain calm, but she glanced at Andy and saw his anger and frustration, and realized she had to be strong for both of them.

"You didn't think your wife would realized that her daughter was missing?" Andy yelled, frustration seeping out of every pore of his being.

"Of course I did, just thought I could get by with saying someone must have kidnapped her."

"Do we need to continue?" Linda asked, hoping the conversation would dissipate quickly.

"No," Sharon shook her head, "Just have your client write down his statement of facts. I'll talk to DDA Hobbs and arrange the life deal. Even though its more than he deserves," she answered before standing. She figured if he could be so careless with a life, so could she.

"Thank you, Captain," Linda replied, sadness showing on her face. Andy stayed behind while Grange wrote his statement, providing police protection should Linda need it. Sharon went to her office, gathered her things and left before sending Andy a text that read, _'Couldn't stand to be in the same building as that man anymore. Come round when you get done. xo.'_

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A glass of wine was exactly what Sharon needed after the day she had had. The story of John Grange killing his daughter over a can of beer had been her undoing. She had never been more grateful for her children and called them all before changing her clothes and pouring herself a generous glass of wine. She had been home for almost two hours when she heard a knock at her door. She wrapped her sweater around her as she stood from the couch and made her way over to the door. "Andy," she sighed, leaning into him as he stepped through the door.

"Hey, sweetheart," he stepped forward and closed the door behind him, wrapping his arms tightly around her. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," she whispered into his neck. "Its not your fault," she reached her hands under his jacket, smoothing them over his back.

"He didn't deserve the deal," he answered, pressing his lips to her forehead.

"Better than having her mother have to deal with him in court," she turned her face into his chest, inhaling deeply. Home. Andy smelled like home. In all her years as an LAPD detective, after a long and exhausting case, there was nothing Sharon loved more than coming home. Now, her home was expanding, as was her heart, but she couldn't ask for anything better.

"What's wrong," Andy asked, sensing her silence. He pulled back and cupped her face gently in his hands, brushing his thumbs across her cheeks.

"Nothing," she shook her head and smiled. She took his hand and began pulling him down the hall until they reached her bedroom.

"Sharon, what are you doing?" Andy asked curiously, watching as Sharon stepped inside her room and watched, expectedly waiting for Andy to follow her. "Andy, come in and close the door. I need you."


End file.
